Figure 3.

TCAF2⁺ TPCs promote colorectal cancer cell motility and liver metastasis by induction of EMT. A) Representative images and quantification of bioluminescence signals in mice orthotopically injected with MC38‐luc cells on various days (n = 6). B) Representative images and H&E analysis of liver metastases derived from MC38‐luc allografts (n = 6). Yellow and black dotted lines indicate the liver metastatic foci. Scale bar, 1 cm (up); 2 mm (down). C,D) Immunohistochemical staining and quantification of EMT markers in primary tumor sections derived from MC38‐luc allografts (n = 5). Scale bar, 50 µm. E) A schematic diagram describing the animal experiment. HCT116 or DLD‐1 cells mixed with the indicated TPCs at a ratio of 1:4 were co‐injected into the cecum wall of mice to construct the CRCLM xenografts. F) Representative images and quantification of bioluminescence signals in mice co‐injected with TPCs and HCT116‐luc cells (n = 6). G) Representative images and quantification of liver metastases derived from CRCLM xenografts (n = 6). Yellow and black dotted lines indicate the liver metastatic foci. Scale bar, 1 cm (up); 2 mm (down). H) Immunohistochemical analysis of EMT markers in primary tumor sections derived from CRCLM xenografts (n = 6). Data are presented as mean ± SEM. *p < 0.05, ***p < 0.001 by two‐tailed unpaired t‐test in (A,B,D); by one‐way ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test in (F,G,H).